The season has been interesting for sure! Last year I was kind of spoiled, it being my first year coaching out here and I had a hard-working and very talented group of kids. All I had to do was build their confidence and watch them take off. This year was very different. I had a much smaller group of kids to work with and most had only been playing basketball for a year or two. Some had talent, some not so much, as is always the case. I had two things on this years team that really stood out. I had a big guy at about 6ft and 180lbs, which is really big for a 7th grader, and he had great skills and footwork. However, he could not keep his grades up and missed half the season, including tomorrow's final tournament. This year, I also had some of the best shooters I've ever had, not much size or quickness, but great shooters.
In 7th grade, and even every grade after, all the way through high school, college, and the NBA, the teams that have the most success are those that play the best defense and have a stud big man. A lot of teams try to play all guards and just outscore every team every game, but it seems to rarely work. But what to do when you have a team where your biggest kid would be a wing on most teams, and you have a bunch of good shooters? You shoot! It's the first time I've ever told a team that I want them taking every single open shot they have. I don't care if it's a 3 or not. I don't care if they miss, we have to shoot when we have open shots. Not sure we can pull out many wins with this strategy, but in middle school basketball, you never know. Our strategy is very simple. Defend, Box out, and shoot and attack the basket as often as possible. Basically no inside post game... We'll see how it goes. May the shots be falling tomorrow morning...
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